


Bittersweet

by Likethewholedamnfire



Category: Criminal UK - Fandom
Genre: Criminal UK, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Secret Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-10-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:21:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,386
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26591338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Likethewholedamnfire/pseuds/Likethewholedamnfire
Summary: Just a couple of one-shots.Based on characters from Criminal UK.Tony's always loved Natalie...secretly. Does she feel the same way?Takes place before the end of Season Two.
Relationships: Tony Myerscough/Natalie Hobbs
Comments: 17
Kudos: 49





	1. Natalie

**Author's Note:**

> I love these two characters and their relationship/friendship dynamic. 
> 
> Also, if you haven't watched Criminal UK, do so now. I'm obsessed. 
> 
> I don't own any of the characters!

She sat on the stairwell, ignoring the bite of cold through her pantsuit. A cup of tea lay in her hands, like a book waiting to be read. Usually she’d nurse it, allow the steam to coat the back of her throat, clear her head. She liked it bitter. No sugar or milk. Nothing to tamp it down. She hated sweet.

Usually.

Paul Ottager wasn’t sweet. He was direct, frank, confident. He could command a room just by walking into it. And she liked that. She liked glancing at him and knowing exactly what he was thinking. He had an open, honest face, stern, composed at times, but honest. He never hid how he felt about her. His intentions were clear, upfront, ever since he’d offered her that drink.

What they had wasn’t sweet. It wasn’t an affair, exactly. Neither of them had partners at the time. But it was secretive, casual…efficient. It filled a need. There was a spark between them, sure, but nothing more than that: a passion that soon fizzled out when things got complicated with…

She took a calculated sip.

‘Natalie?’

She glanced up quickly, startled. The floor was normally emptied out by now. Their hours were long and inconsistent, but the interrogation had ended almost an hour ago, and most of the paperwork had fallen to her desk. She’d stuck around to finish it up, and found herself buried in an entirely different matter instead.

‘Tony?’

Her raised eyebrows were met with a small smile. He had that sheepish grin, one that passed briefly across his face, only to be shadowed by the aversion of his gaze to his feet.

She often wondered how he’d gotten into this line of work. Obviously, she’d recruited him to the team, but she’d never asked him outright why he’d chosen to go into this field. It was clear he had a knack for it. But he wasn’t like Paul Ottager: reserved, stoic. Hard to crack. He wasn’t intimidating, and if he worked anywhere else, he’d probably fade into the background: shy, passive guy. She definitely wouldn’t have noticed him then. But here he was, in the room, on the team, his presence commanding attention, but in a different way.

Tony Myerscough was sweet.

And she’d started wondering if she was beginning to like it.

‘I thought you’d be gone by now.’

‘Yeah, well,’ he shrugged and motioned to the hallway. ‘Just had a few things I wanted to sort.’

She nodded. A comfortable silence fell, disrupted only by the low hum of the coffee machine.

‘Well, uh,’ Tony smiled again, clutching his briefcase to his chest, eyeing the elevator almost regrettably. ‘Have a good night.’

‘Hey, Tony?’ she called out to him, biting her lip. ‘Do you…would you want to join me? Cup of tea?’

His eyes shone for a moment, the smallest flash. ‘Sure, guv.’ Slipping off his jacket, he set down his briefcase by the base of the stairs and indicated the kitchen a few doors down. ‘I’ll go grab a mug.’

She nodded again. As he walked down the hall, hand in pocket, pushing his glasses against his nose, she found herself standing to follow him.

After all, her tea could use a little more milk and sugar.


	2. Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next day ;)

Tony adjusted his collar. The lights glared loudly at him. He removed his glasses to wipe off the ever-present glint that seemed to distract him a little more today.

He squinted. Pushed them back onto the bridge of his nose. Coughed once. Shifted in his seat slightly. Decided his new position wasn’t comfortable, so shifted again. He rested his elbows on his legs, leaning forward. Scratched his chin. Sighed.

‘Enough!’ Vanessa yelled.

He jumped, spilling hot coffee onto his lap. A hiss escaped his lips as he stood and began to pat his trousers dry.

He shot a glare at Vanessa. Her arms were folded across her chest. She reclined in her chair, her gaze apprehensive, wary.

His annoyance soon turned to confusion. ‘Sorry –what? Did I miss something?’

She took into his furrowed eyebrows, a small smile beginning to form. ‘You had that drink, didn’t you?’

‘What?’ He swallowed. His eyes averted to Natalie quickly, who sat in the other room, completely unaware of the scene behind the mirror. She was bent over some paperwork, reviewing her case file diligently as they brought in the suspect from downstairs.

Despite being able to keep collected and calm in his interrogations, Tony knew he was shit at personal questions. He hated being asked them. There wasn’t anything he could hide about himself- not well, at least. Well, supposedly. Somehow Natalie managed to remain oblivious to his rather obvious crush, even after he slipped her that small birthday present as they walked to their cars that night.

_‘Natalie, hey!’ he called after her. She turned, tucking her chin into the collar of her coat._

_He caught up to her, a little lop-sided with his briefcase in tow, and held out the package to her._

_She took it cautiously in her gloved hands. Examining the wrapping, and the tag that read her name, she raised an eyebrow at him, both confused and surprised. ‘You remembered?’_

_‘Yeah,’ he shrugged sheepishly. ‘Of course.’_

_Before she could respond, he nervously reached for the nape of his neck and began to head toward his car, parked in the opposite direction._

_‘Tony!’ He glanced back. A smile had cracked, ever so slightly, her otherwise ice-cold demeanor._

_‘Thank you.’_

‘Uh,’ Tony crumpled the wet napkin in his hand and shuffled to the trash can. On the way out to replace his coffee, he took a moment to regard Vanessa. ‘We, uh, we just had tea in the breakroom.’

‘Uh-huh,’ Vanessa nodded with a smirk, but turned her attention back to the glass as the door opened in the other room, seemingly satisfied.

Tony stopped as the door shut behind him, the hallway grey and empty.

He thought to the night before, how they’d sat and chatted for hours after Natalie followed him to top up her mug. Nothing had come of it, just a conversation, but Tony had noticed that she’d slowly moved closer to him, stripped off her jacket, touched the sleeve of his shirt…

_Fuck._

Maybe she wasn’t the only oblivious one.


	3. Natalie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is just a one shot, and doesn't follow the previous two chapters necessarily. 
> 
> I liked the idea of Tony flirting with someone else in front of Natalie, and how she would respond. 
> 
> Basically, what happens when Natalie gets jealous?

Tony was blushing.

She didn’t like it.

He cleared his throat. Mumbled something under his breath, straightened his tie, fumbled with his glasses. His hair fell slightly across his forehead, slick with sweat.

She laughed. Arched her back so that her blouse opened, revealing a bit more bare skin than was appropriate. Her smile stretched wide. Tony wouldn’t have the heart to tell her there was a smudge of pink lipstick on her front tooth, but Natalie was beginning to suspect he hadn’t even noticed. The way his eyes lit up as she tugged on his jacket sleeve, how his shoulders shook, bearing the weight of whatever flirty compliment she’d whispered, low enough for no one else in the hallway to hear.

Natalie had her arms crossed tight over her chest. She tapped her foot impatiently as the coffee machine whirred, slow and morose, spilling out a mug she hadn’t even wanted. The scent was bitter, sickening, even. But when she’d heard word that _she_ was the solicitor on their newest case, and Tony had suddenly excused himself from the room, well, she just happened to notice then that her cup was empty.

Her eyes fell to pair, standing much closer than a strictly professional relationship permitted.

And that’s when she saw it: the blush. Faint on his cheeks, but there, along with that stupidly charming grin of his.

Her nails dug circles into skin through her shirt.

As she narrowed her gaze, the elevator sounded behind her. She barely registered it. Tony had just reached out to fix her badge, which had been serendipitously caught in an earring.

‘Tony’s getting his flirt on, huh?’

Startled, Natalie shook her head. Her coffee had finished pouring minutes ago. She hastily snatched the mug up and turned to face Vanessa, who was watching the couple at the end of the hall with interest.

‘Vanessa, hi,’ she breathed, flustered.

Vanessa shifted her curious stare to Natalie. ‘Hi.’

She took a sip of her coffee, glancing to the window. ‘I hope you’ve had a good morning.’

‘You okay, guv?’

‘Absolutely,’ she answered without hesitation, whirling briskly on her heel towards the interrogation room. Vanessa adjusted the strap of her backpack and followed. ‘I’ll debrief you inside.’

She held the door open. Vanessa slipped past her, unable to conceal her smirk. Natalie rolled her eyes.

‘Tony?’ She said his name a little harsher than usual.

His attention snapped towards her. ‘Natalie. I, um,’ he looked to the solicitor regrettably, ‘I suppose we’d better get started. I’ll see you in there.’

She caught how he gently tapped her elbow in parting, wishing her luck. The solicitor smiled warmly in return.

As Tony approached, he began to mutter an apology. Natalie waited until he was close enough, and then stepped inside, allowing the door to start closing on him.

It was petty. But entirely worth the mug of lukewarm coffee she was going to have to suffer sipping for the next few hours.


	4. Paul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's a little piece from Paul Ottager's point of view. 
> 
> I really wanted to delve into what the 'jacket' from 01 x 02 was all about. 
> 
> Look for the companion chapter tonight!

Paul rested on the elevator railing and took a deep breath. He stared down at his feet as it rose steadily. The jacket felt tight, tighter than when he’d tried it on in the shop. It’d done nothing to prevent the encroaching chill of December, and pairing it with a scarf or hat would’ve ruined the look. He stuffed his hands in the pockets, hoping to warm them. They were supposed to meet at their usual Thai place, but a last-minute case had wrapped up the rest of the team. He offered to meet them at work instead. He’d hitch a ride with Vanessa or Duffy. Or they’d all ride together in Tony’s. It wasn’t far from the office, but even a short walk sounded miserable outside in this jacket.

It was rich, brown leather, an early Christmas present to himself, but not exactly the most sensible choice for London’s infamous cold. He debated wearing it, wary of the inevitable temperature drop, but ultimately couldn’t resist. He wanted to look nice for their annual Christmas dinner. So he shrugged it on, ignoring the voice in his head that corrected him: he wanted to look nice for _her._

Nothing had happened between them for months. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t on the table since he was back in town. Normally, they’d drink a little too much and end up sharing a taxi back to one of their apartments. And with the whole team reunited, Paul guessed they were likely to celebrate _a little more_ than usual. Especially if they were able to close this case successfully.

The elevator sounded, and the doors slid open.

Paul walked confidently into the hallway, only to notice it was completely empty. _So they’re still in the interrogation, then._ Freezing, he fished in his pockets for loose change and poured himself a cup of hot tea from the machine. It dispensed it slowly, giving him time to glance around and take in the quiet. He missed this place sometimes. Missed the thrill. He liked his new job, but there was something about this team, something he couldn’t quite let go.

Keying in the code, a code that had yet to update since his departure, he let himself into the observation room.

Duffy, Tony, and a man he didn’t recognize were huddled around the glass. Tony glanced up at him, but offered no greeting. He was nice enough, Paul thought, but they’d never really taken to each other, not as friends, anyway. They were on the same page in the room, as colleagues, especially with the Edgar investigation, but never as mates. Then there was Duffy, who he’d always liked to tease. They had good banter. And then this new guy.

Paul locked eyes with Duffy and nodded towards the stranger, raising an eyebrow subtly. Duffy seemed to be out of the loop, too, though, so he approached the man instead.

‘Paul,’ he held out his hand.

‘Kyle Petit.’ They exchanged nothing else but their names and a handshake, leaving Paul to settle into a chair and wonder who he was and why he was here. His replacement, perhaps? Already?

Natalie was on the other side of the glass, enveloped in the interrogation.

She looked well. She always did. Straight, red hair, white, button-down shirt, tan, loose pants that reached to above her waist. Put-together, professional, razor-edged.

He adjusted his jacket.

Hopefully, she would like it.


	5. Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacket part 3 (from Natalie's point of view) coming soon. :)

Tony had to bite the inside of his cheek. It was all he could do to keep himself from rolling his eyes.

 _Paul Ottager._ He wasn’t supposed to be here. Well, yes, he was invited to Christmas supper, like always, but he was meant to meet them at the restaurant once they’d wrapped up the case. He wasn’t supposed to be _here._ He left the team. Earned a promotion. Quit. Moved on. Well, _supposedly_ moved on.

He still knew the code for the observation room, which reminded Tony they needed to change it. Not to keep him personally out, no, but for security reasons. Safety.

Once he opened the door, Tony stiffened. He waltzed in without a second thought like he owned the bloody place, sipping on his tea casually and peering through the glass with interest at what was an incredibly _confidential_ interrogation with their prime suspect.

They made eye contact. Tony tried to suppress his annoyance and smile, but only managed a grimace. Paul acknowledged Duffy and Kyle, their new, somewhat mysterious colleague.

When it was clear no one was going to speak, Paul took it upon himself to make the introductions.

That’s when Tony noticed it: the jacket.

He looked away quickly. Something burned in him, deeper than frustration or irritation. Besides his arrogance, Paul always managed to look so… _cool._ Tony almost scoffed, and had to clear his throat to cover the noise of disgust. Unfortunately, there was no other word. He was effortlessly and infuriatingly cool, and it drove Tony mad to admit that most people fell for his charm. That _Natalie_ had fallen for it. 

Not everyone could pull off a tight, brown leather jacket, but somehow Paul made it look like the most comfortable thing in the world. It accentuated his physique nicely, broad shoulders, slim torso. As he settled into a chair next to him, Tony also detected the rich cologne he was wearing. The musky scent matched perfectly with the rather aged, worn appearance of the jacket.

The most maddening part was: he couldn’t tell if Paul was actually making an effort. Did he purposefully wear that tonight, knowing he was going to see Natalie?

Was he trying to _impress_ her? Win her back?

And most importantly, would it work?

Because the hard part about being around Paul wasn’t so much his personality. He dealt with plenty of cocky assholes on the job.

No, it was that when Paul was near, Tony seemed to fade into the background.

After all, with someone like Paul in the room, who would notice him? 

Natalie hadn't.


	6. Natalie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers for 01x02 so don't read if you haven't seen it yet! 
> 
> Otherwise, enjoy the conclusion to the great 'jacket' dilemma. :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for all the lovely feedback and support! It's good to know I'm not the only one who 1) loves this show and 2) loves this ship!

_What a fucking night._

Natalie slipped on her coat, making sure to the turn off the lights as she exited the observation room.

She noticed Tony on the stairs at the end of the hallway.

A warmth pooled in her stomach. He’d waited for her.

As she approached, his attention shifted from the window. He greeted her with a smile as she settled in next to him.

‘The right outcome,’ he reminded her firmly.

‘Even though it wasn’t?’

‘Even though it wasn’t.’

She sighed heavily and fought the urge to bury her face in her hands. It wasn’t right. A woman was about to be arrested for defending herself, for killing a man that had consistently and severely abused her. She was going to be punished for protecting herself, and there was nothing they could do about it. They’d found the responsible party. That was their job. That’s all that mattered. They’d got the right guy. Justice be damned.

Sometimes, Natalie hated this bloody job.

She couldn’t wait to get home and heat her Thai food. The others ate during the interrogation, and afterwards…well, suffice to say, the celebratory mood had been good and properly ruined. They’d been nice enough to pack some up for her and Vanessa to take with them, suspecting that they wouldn’t have much of an appetite once the paperwork had been filed.

Except…Natalie also wasn’t ready to leave, not quite yet. She liked sitting with Tony. He was a quiet, steady presence, understanding and patient. She felt morally at war with herself, equally disgusted and enraged, but somehow Tony seemed to dull her inner conflict. Instead of wanting to punch something, she just wanted to curl up into his side and cry.

The weight of this job was a burden they shared, and no matter what, she knew Tony was in this with her. She wasn’t alone.

‘Paul’s bought a new jacket to impress you with.’ He chuckled under his breath.

Natalie had been staring ahead, towards the ground. She blinked.

_Paul’s bought a new jacket to impress you with._

At first, she wasn’t sure if he’d actually spoken. It seemed to come out of nowhere and vanish just as quickly. But the gravity of his words clung to the air between them.

_Paul bought a new jacket?_ She then wondered. _What does that have to do with me? Why is he bringing this up?_

She realized then that he must’ve known. He must’ve known about their discreet relationship, which had ended months prior, when Paul transferred.

She angled her head towards him, but didn’t meet his eyes, still processing the implications of his statement. _Why does he care? And why the bloody hell would he say that now, in this moment, after what just happened? It’s the most trivial…the absolute last thing on my mind…I don’t give a fuck about Paul’s new jacket…are you fucking serious?_ That’s _what you’re thinking about? I just had to sentence a woman to prison for killing a man because he beat her so much and no one did a fucking thing about it, except her sister, who did a whole fucking lot by confessing, and now they’re both…are you kidding, Tony? What does it matter what_ Paul _does? What does it-_

Finally, she met his eyes. He was smiling, laughing to himself. She stared at him incredulously.

He was trying to make light of it. Trying to take her mind off the case. It was poorly-timed, but well-meant. And Natalie suddenly found herself being drawn to his levity. She couldn’t believe he’d said it, but it made her realize something: he was here for her. He’d waited to make sure she was okay. He was trying to bring her back to reality. He knew her well enough to know that she’d spiral if not distracted.

She couldn’t help it, then: her gaze moved to his lips.

In that moment, she wanted to assure him more than anything that whatever she’d had with Paul was over. She wasn’t sure why, but something inside her screamed that it was important he know that no matter how many new jackets he bought, Paul would never measure up.

She started to lean in, to give in to the magnetic intensity of the moment, just as Tony’s smile began to fade into something else. He looked away nervously, only to glance up at her again, hopeful, innocent. _Yearning._

‘Shall I…hold the lift?’

She thought she’d been the last one to leave, but it seemed like Kyle, the new recruit, had used the bathroom and escaped their notice coming down the hallway.

Whatever spell had fallen was instantly broken. They both turned to him, nodding, and gathered their things. Tony cleared his throat behind her, but she was already to the elevator.

She stepped inside, refusing to look at him.

She leaned against the railing, still trying to puzzle through her feelings.

All she could say for sure was: the fucking night wasn’t over yet.


End file.
